JetBlue makes hostile bid for Spirit Airlines after twice being rebuffed

JetBlue is going hostile in its bid for Spirit Airlines and asking shareholders of the low-cost carrier to reject a proposed $2.9 billion acquisition by Frontier Airlines.

JetBlue is going straight to shareholders with its offer in hopes of pushing the board of the Florida airline to the negotiating table. Shares of spirit jumped 17% before the opening bell Monday.

"JetBlue offers more value – a significant premium in cash – more certainty, and more benefits for all stakeholders," JetBlue CEO Robin Hayes said in a statement. "Frontier offers less value, more risk, no divestiture commitments and no reverse break-up fee, despite more overlap on non-stop routes and their own regulatory challenges."

JetBlue on April 5 made its first offer to buy Spirit Airlines for about $3.6 billion, offering $33 per share in cash. A takeover by JetBlue would break up a plan for Spirit to merge with rival budget carrier Frontier Airlines.

Spirit has rejected JetBlue's $3.6 billion offer twice already, saying antitrust regulators are unlikely to approve an offer from the New York City airline because of its alliance with American Airlines in the Northeast. The Justice Department is suing to block that deal.

"We struggle to understand how JetBlue can believe" that the Justice Department or a court would let JetBlue strike a deal with American, then buy Spirit, eliminating the nation's largest low-cost airline, the Spirit board said in a letter to JetBlue directors.

Spirit shareholders are scheduled to vote June 10 on the Frontier bid favored by the Spirit board.

JetBlue on Monday offered $30 a share in cash for each share held by Spirit investors, but said it's open to paying its initial offer price of $33 a share if the board at Spirit enters talks and provides data that JetBlue has requested.

It said that the lower per-share price is based on Spirit's unwillingness to share information it requested.